My RiseSmart Story: Regional Vice President, Northeast, Desirae Palma

A company is only as good as the people who work there—and, fortunately, the people who work at RiseSmart happen to be pretty great! Even with our employees spread out across the world, RiseSmarters are drawn together by a set of shared values that create a close-knit, teamwork-oriented family environment that permeates our entire culture. (It sounds cliché—but if you set foot in our corporate HQ, you’ll be blown away by how true it is!)

Every so often, we like to shine the spotlight on the members of our team who work tirelessly behind the scenes to help build the technology and offer the services that change the lives of transitioning talent all over the world.

Blending my background in neuroscience, talent management, and sales, I work to help companies see the benefit of creating habit forming job search strategies that reduce corporate risk. As RVP of the North East Region for RiseSmart, I am helping to disrupt the outplacement industry by providing next generation, proven outplacement solutions that are relevant.

What were you doing before RiseSmart?

Prior to joining RiseSmart, I worked at the NeuroLeadership Group (NLG), a consulting and training firm led by Dr. David Rock, a global thought leader in the HR and talent management space. Serving as an apprentice to Dr. Rock, I learned how to operationalize neuroscience as a talent management consultant and business development representative. Following the year-long apprenticeship I spent the following two years as the head of solutions sales and operations at NLG where I was responsible for driving business development initiatives partnering with organizations to reinvent performance management, break bias, and design leadership development initiatives.

What are your favorite hobbies or activities to do outside of work?

I enjoy traveling, spending time with family and friends, reading, dancing, and finding things to do that challenge my thinking.

How did you end up learning about RiseSmart?

I learned about RiseSmart through a recruiter that reached out to me to tell me about the job opening. Then in reading about the company and the position I decided it was not only a great opportunity as far as a next step in my career, but I also saw that RiseSmart was awarded one of the “great places to work” so I agreed to move through the interview process.

What made you decide to work for RiseSmart?

Prior to making the decision to join RiseSmart, I wanted to understand why the product was so successful in helping impacted employees. It was really through my understanding of Neuroscience and how it applies to talent management that I saw a formula emerge for how outplacement needs to be delivered so that the impacted employee can embed a new “habit” or routine around the job search. Once I had this insight I saw the key to RiseSmart’s success is in the “design” of the Outplacement solution, as it provides impacted employees with exactly what they need in order to achieve their goal of finding a new job, which in turn results in minimized risks for the organization.

What is your favorite thing about working for RiseSmart?

I really love the culture! It is an amazing balance of autonomy and team work. Everyone on their own is driven to do amazing work but no matter what, if you need help someone is always there to support you.

Describe a “WOW” experience you’ve had or given since working for RiseSmart.

Just a few weeks into my role I attended a two-day summit in San Jose. The entire summit was so thoughtfully organized and I got so much out of the experience. I have attended many events in the past but this summit was by far the best in terms of learning and building strong relationships.

What is one reason why someone should come and work for RiseSmart?

Our outplacement solution is simply the best one on the market which means as a team we have real opportunity to help impacted employees during a difficult time and make a real difference in people’s lives.